Naruto: Blood Mist Chronicle
by deathbyd4
Summary: Sixteen years before the events of Naruto, the Hidden Mist Village is at war with the Hidden Leaf Village. Possibly AU. Based on tabletop Naruto D20 sessions.
1. Blood Mist Chronicle Start!

Naruto:

Blood Mist Chronicle

By deathbyd4

Episode 1

Chronicle Start! The Ice Queen and the Dog Lover.

Himuro Tachibana, female student of the first graduating class of the Reformed Shinobi Academy of Kirigakure, Hidden Mist Village, went over the 25th tenet of Shinobi in her mind.

"A Shinobi shall not be swayed by emotion, for emotion will hinder the success of a mission," easier said than done really. The wiry black haired, misty blue eyed girl of eleven years sighed inwardly and looked to her left at the two other students who shared the large desk on the far right side of the room with her, both seemed just as eager as she did for the end of this small, semi-formal ceremony.

It had been four years since Tachi had decided to enter into the Academy. Her family's reaction was not one of surprise, for the way of the Shinobi was ingrained in her blood. The look on her father's face was one of mixed pride and fear, her mother's, a more resigned acknowledgement. Tachi didn't understand what the big deal was either way, after all her older sister, father and mother were all Shinobi, Shinobi in the way that most Himuro family members had been and would be.

Her gaze met with Meimou Kouchi, who gave her a wry half smile and a quick flip of her light blond hair. Tachi could never tell if the girl meant her smiles. She was one of those super popular types that most girls wanted to be and most boys at least looked at, if they didn't hound her for attention outright.

Next to Kouchi was Okamichi Yuri, whom Tachi didn't know very well. She was a loud girl with a reputation of being ill-tempered. Her hair was worn high on the back of her head in a ponytail, it wasn't that way because of any cosmetic intent it was there simply to keep her long hair out of her face, which was probably only long because she was too lazy or apathetic to cut it. Yuri gave Tachi a look under half lidded eyes as if to say "whaddya want?"

Tachi diverted her gaze back to the front of the class room they'd all received lessons in the past 4 years. One Shobu Sumiya was at the front with their teacher Hayashida sensei. He looked a little nervous about the situation, maybe not as nervous as Tachibana, but enough to stutter in thanking Hayashida sensei for his brand new Mist headband. She smiled at him when he turned around to return to his seat and he smiled back with an expression on his face that said "I did it! Yeah!"

"Himuro Tachibana," her own name broke the moment and she hurried to her feet with a mumbled acknowledgement.

---

"It has been a pleasure being with all of you these past four years," Hayashida sensei paused, "but now that time is over. All of you have shaped up to be wonderful students, better than I had ever expected, and I can only hope that you'll all be responsible, resourceful Genin as well." Hayashida sensei paused again to survey the classroom, passing his eyes over a few problem students that generally worried him, but that would be out of his hands now.

"As of today I am no longer your sensei. You will all be divided and assigned to a willing Jounin, two students to each, and with him or her you will form a team to continue your training. Perhaps one day you yourself will be a Chuunin, or more, if you make it that long."

He let the silence hang heavy in the air. Everyone knew how important a milestone this graduating class was. It was the first since that tragedy, the tragedy known as Zabuza Momochi, Demon of the Hidden Mist. It was something talked about in low hurried voices as if invoking his name would bring him back. The adults of the village would change the subject if it was spoken of, or in some cases grow angry or overly somber, staring off as if seeing another time or place.

"I wish you all luck in your endeavors, along with your headband you were given a scroll. On this scroll is the name of your assigned Jounin and a meeting time and place. I expect all of you to make a good name for this Academy and to be a shining example of Genin for our village."

---

On her way home Tachi paused a moment by the wall of a residential home to open the scroll. It was a plain beige roll of paper wrapped tightly and tied with the official blue cord of Mist documentation. Unrolling it with no small amount of excitement, Tachi was met with quite the sight.

The interior of the message was covered in crude cartoon drawings, presumably of a woman. One by the corner had her making a scary face was sharp teeth and some text introducing herself as Hayaise Sujiya, a second herself with a big grin and a thumbs up, giving the appropriate gathering location and a warning not to be late. Tachi raised an eyebrow, mouth agape. What kind of Jounin had such bad hand writing? She even took the time to make these crude drawings. If she was going to be her new sensei and team leader…

Tachi didn't have the time to finish the thought. A body flew seemingly from nowhere and slammed into her, knocking her prostrate and sending the scroll flying several meters away. A few moments of chaos and angry shouts filled the air as her assailant scrambled to her feet, leaving the stunned Tachi on the ground and face to face with a tiny black pup.

The pup seemed overjoyed with the chaos of the situation and gave her a giant lick right across the face before bounding off to pursue his master. Tachi's eyes followed him away and up to see Okamichi Yuri, her face contorted with rage and shouting something about kicking Subaru's ass.

That's right, Zensoku Subaru, the taijutsu prodigy of their graduating class. Tachi had never liked Subaru all that much. He was overly boisterous and quick to a scuffle even when it wasn't appropriate, wasted energy really. Had Yuri and Subaru been fighting? She'd heard of them fighting it out before, the two of them had the most awkward friendship she'd ever seen. They'd be discussing things grudgingly one moment and then fighting it out the next.

"Just stop Subaru," heard Tachi as she picked herself up off the ground, "you did insult her." That was the voice of Jiisha, Subaru's best friend, and a fire jutsu enthusiast, if not a specialist. Fire jutsu was incredibly uncommon in Kirigakure.

Subaru shot him a glance, but it held no malice. "Hey, she smells bad, so I said she smells bad. Damn dog lover." The comment only further angered Yuri, who now stood in a fighting stance, her little black pup at her side growling.

"Hey now," Subaru added, turning back to Yuri before she could rush him. "Let's settle this correctly. A proper match down by the western training grounds at the edge of the village. What do you say? I promise I won't call you a dirty dog lover anymore." His grin was anything but amiable.

Yuri hesitated a few moments before relaxing and settling into a more relaxed stance, one leg forward and a hand on her hip. "Sounds good to me. Just make sure Jiisha comes along so he can carry you home." She stuck her tongue out at him.

Teeth set, Subaru turned and walked, leaving Jiisha a bit surprised and staring down Yuri on his own. He have a nervous wave and a chuckle before turning back to follow Jiisha.

The little black pup turned and leapt into Yuri's arms, who then tucked him away in the fold of her vest as she faced Tachibana. "Sorry about that. He said some pretty dumb stuff, then I got thrown over here. Didn't mean to slam into you…" she trailed off as something caught her eye on the ground.

"Hey is that your scroll?" she bent down to pick it up at the same moment that Tachibana lowered herself to do the same, mumbling a positive response. They both reached out to take it, but Yuri was faster.

"Whoa!? You have Sujiya sensei too? Aw, everyone says she's crazy."

Tachibana drew back a bit flustered that Yuri was being so forward with her possessions when it hit her. "Wait, too?" she asked.

"Yes, I also received a scroll from Sujiya sensei," she lifted a hand to take a scroll that her little pup had been holding in his mouth suddenly. Was that just a regular dog? That seemed a little too intelligent for a regular puppy.

"Says to meet by the lake at the north side right? Weeper's pond?" Yuri held her scroll up and opened it for Tachi's perusal. Like her own scroll, Yuri's was covered in little crude drawings, presumably also of Sujiya in various characterizations of moods.

Yuri suddenly lowered the scroll. "Tomorrow at noon. So I guess this means we are team mates huh?"

Tachibana let that sink in for a moment. When she'd collected her thoughts again she spoke "I guess it does…" she looked down at her clothing and set to tidying herself post impact. Her heart fell a bit, she'd been hoping to be teamed up with Sumiya. "Let's work together." She bowed.

Yuri eyed her bowing, and returned a quick bow of her own after a moment. "Right, well I'm off to go kick that thug's ass. You coming? Seeing as we're team mates and all."

Tachi was a bit taken aback by the sudden invite. She had wanted to rush home and see her parents, sister and the praise they'd undoubtedly rain down on her.

"Sure you're coming!" Yuri grinned as she grabbed Tachi's arm and hauled her off in the direction Subaru and Jiisha had gone.

---

Yuri shifted her left foot forward a bit more, setting her jaw firmly as she did so. About ten meters opposite her stood Zensoku Subaru looking bored, as if his presence was unnecessary to the sparring match he proposed. Smug bastard.

Tachi stood along the sidelines with an equally uncomfortable Jiisha. The arena in question was a large, flat sandy area covered with massive wooden stakes that had been stabbed into the earth, each was about a half meter wide and evenly spaced in rows throughout, with a clear area in the middle where the two combatants now stood.

The expression on her face told much about her desire to be there, but who was she to refuse her new team mate?

After a few more moments of tense silence, heightened by the thick mist that always hung low over their village, Subaru jumped into action. He rushed forward, arms tucked low and close, body bent down, Subaru closed the distance between himself and Yuri in seconds, delivering a roundhouse kick that she easily ducked under. She raised a fist to strike him but he swatted it away with equal skill. He followed up by jumping backward and clasping his hands together, hand seals flashing in rapid succession. When it was done his body seemed to blur with every motion, as if his natural speed had suddenly increased greatly.

Yuri was not idle however, she spun backward with a flourish while her little pup leapt from her vest and down by her side. She landed on all fours in a feral position, much like her little friend beside her. Tachi could swear that she had suddenly grown claws and sharpened fangs.

"C'mon Kurobozu." She stated flatly, "we have to take out the trash." And with that she rushed, the dog at her side.

Subaru was not frightened so easily however and he was ready for her. The moment Yuri closed the distance between them he launched into an eight hit flurry of blows, most of them raining on her torso. This must have been the reason for his bravado, he was known as a taijutsu prodigy for good reason.

Tachi gasped at the same moment that Jiisha grunted in approval while Yuri spun backward, landing hard and rolling a good meter. She was quick to her feet however, and the anger in her eyes told Subaru just how much she was going to hurt him. Charging forward furiously gave Kurobozu the distraction he needed to clamp down on Subaru's ankle from behind. He flinched and tried to move out of the way, but Yuri was already on him.

The two collided with a too-loud thud and fell in a heap. Yuri was in complete control of the situation however and quickly set to work raking her claws on Subaru's face and chest, even going so far to bite him on the shoulder. She ended her ferocious attack with an overhead slam to his face which made Tachibana and Jiisha flinch at the sight of it. Subaru lay still in the aftermath.

Yuri took a moment to gain her composure. For a moment she appeared to have wanted to continue the violence despite her obvious victory after rendering Subaru unconscious.

She stood up, keeping her eyes fixed on his body until her breathing slowed, she then slowly made her way over to Jiisha and Tachibana, both of which stood in shock at how quickly the altercation had come to a close. Yuri's expression suddenly brightened into a cheerful smile when she addressed Tachi, "Alright, I'll see you tomorrow Tachi."

Tachibana gave her a weak smile and a wave as Yuri ran off, little Kurobozu in tow. She turned back to see Jiisha kneeling over Subaru, who was starting to come around with a groan. Yeah, that'd be a good time to see her self out.

---

Hayaise Sujiya reviewed the information provided of her new charges, the first; Himuro Tachibana, currently the youngest in the Himuro clan, renowned and feared as far as the Fire country for its ability to control ice and the fearsome elementalist Shinobi that the clan produced.

The other Genin was Okamichi Yuri, the young hot head of the Okamichi family. Although the family's primary focus was taijutsu that was not what they were known for. The Okamichi family had spent generations raising and training specially selected wolves that their fighting style borrowed from. They were much like the Hidden Leaf village's Inuzuka clan, a similarity that bred a rivalry that was blazing fiercely now that the Mist was at war with the Leaf.

She was pleased with the Himuro assignment to her team, Tachibana. Sujiya herself was an expert at water jutsu, and she would have much to pass on to the young Himuro. Yuri was good as well, it was nice to have some raw muscle around, and the Okamichi could be quite intimidating when pressed.

Yes, it was a good match on all parts, one day they would be an effective team to be reckoned with. Things could have been much worse by far, yes, much worse. The Mizukage wanted results from this class, and fast. Zabuza had set them back quite a bit with his episode that left the last graduating class completely terminated at his hands and Lord Mizukage was aiming to fill the gap.

This class had brought the Shinobi of the village much joy, but accompanying that great joy was great expectation. The training would be harsh and quick, the stars shining above, and the weak likely culled before they were sent to fight the war against the Leaf. It may have seemed heartless from the outside, but that was the way of the Bloody Mist, only the strong, only the great. That was how they had built greatness from near nothing, as they were vastly outnumbered by the Leaf. They made up for this flaw with sheer skill and brutality.

Sujiya grinned to herself as she closed the dossier and tossed her thick unruly hair back out of her eyes. The twenty-four year old would have a lot of fun tomorrow, much of it to the dismay of her hapless little Genin.


	2. Training! A harsh teacher

Naruto:

Blood Mist Chronicle

By deathbyd4

Episode 2

Training! A harsh teacher.

The two combatants closed the distance yet again, a struggle, a quick succession of attacks finding their mark and Hirano Rakka was down again. The boy pushed himself off the ground, grunting as pain coursed through his overstrained left elbow. There was a laugh.

That was the other boy, Hyuuga Himachi. He had carefully parted shoulder length brown hair, a pale thin face, and a sneer that said "see, told you". Rakka stared at Himachi as he laughed. If it wasn't for those damn eyes of his, the Byakugan, he'd have some sort of chance.

A slow clap, one of unimpressed acknowledgment, broke Himachi's laughter. There was a man sitting on the branch of a tree located at the edge of the clearing that Rakka and Himachi had been sparring in. He was much taller and older than the two boys who called him sensei.

The man, named Uchiha Karai, dropped down from the tree suddenly and dusted himself off as he casually strolled over. His silky black hair, which seemed to be well taken care of, was out of place on his ugly mug. The right side of Karai's face was covered with scars, save his eye.

"That's really nothing Himachi. You shouldn't be celebrating over beating someone so weak." Himachi glared at him. "Save your gloating for when you defeat someone on the same level as you. It's just shameful the way you are now."

Rakka looked away during all this, he was glad his black hair was long enough to hang down and cover his face, if only a little, to hide the burning embarrassment he was feeling at Karai's words. How could sensei treat him this way? He'd worked hard.

"Get up Rakka," Karai startled Rakka with his tone. "Don't feel bad about losing to someone like Himachi. He's Hyuuga after all. You can't beat his Byakugan."

Yes, the Byakugan, the famed power of the Hyuuga bloodline. It allowed the user to focus chakra into their eyes. In a way that Rakka did not fully understand, the user was able to see in all directions and respond to any attack the moment it was made.

"It's by no means as powerful as Uchiha's Sharingan," Karai had once said about the Hyuuga's treasured ability, "but it's still something to respect for sure."

The Byakugan was a respectable power. Both Karai and Himachi were greatly respected because of their family's blood line abilities. Rakka had heard what the other shinobi of Konohagakure, Hidden Leaf Village, had said about his team mate and sensei.

For starters, Karai wasn't known for his stability. He'd spent years on the front lines of the war against the Mist and because of that he was prone to flying into a rage when most others would handle the situation a bit more rationally.

Karai was released from duty on the front lines to teach the freshly graduated genin not too long ago by the fourth Hokage himself. He'd been pretty confident in this choice after Karai attacked a fellow jounin for commenting on his facial scars. No one knew exactly who scarred Karai's face, and Rakka wasn't about to ask him.

Himachi was… well Himachi was Himachi. Boastful, manipulative, cowardly, there wasn't much Rakka liked about his reluctant teammate. In all his thirteen years he hadn't met someone as detestable as Hyuuga Himachi.

Finally, painfully, Rakka stood and readjusted his headband. It was always coming off at the most inopportune times. He turned to Himachi and Karai, hoping they'd let him go without too much hassle today.

"Alright, get some rest. We leave for our first C mission tomorrow. If you're late, you'll regret it." Karai turned and walked back toward the village without another word, leaving Himachi and Rakka alone in the growing darkness.

"I love how stuff always looks so orange this time of evening," this was a new voice, that of Nastumomo Kinako. The girl, who happened to be the third teammate and a bit more tolerable than Himachi, strolled over from the shadows.

"Ugh! You guys are filthy! Go take a bath or something." She pinched her nose between her forefinger and her thumb and turned her face away to drive home her point.

"Sensei made us spar again Kinako," Rakka replied, trying to avoid Himachi's laughing gaze. Kinako frowned at this.

"Yeah, at least he wants to see what you two can do. He doesn't think I can fight at all. If he didn't have to take me along he probably would leave me behind from that big mission tomorrow." She pouted cutely, her face colored sweetly in the twilight. Rakka wondered how she managed to keep her hair so straight and shiny despite their constant training.

"It's because you're a girl Kinako." That was Himachi. "You know, sensei is… sexist."

"So not fair! I'm just as good as Himachi," he glared at her, "Well better than Rakka at least." She laughed. Rakka made a face at her.

"Yeah, whatever. I'm going. I'll see you two tomorrow." Rakka turned and was gone.

--

Tachibana rose earlier than usual. Probably due to the apprehension she was feeling about meeting her new sensei later on that day. The scroll had said noon, and it was only eight now. That'd meant she'd have to kill some time.

Tachi kicked her wave patterned blue covers off and hopped out of bed, she strode across the room and dressed, observing her form in the large mirror she'd received as a present from her older sister.

"Still so flat." She sighed and hurried out of the room.

Tachibana's apprehension led her to start out a little earlier than was really necessary. So early in fact, that even after breakfast, discussions with her mother about jutsu, going to see her father about some training he would give her later that week, and her older sister dropping by to tell Tachibana about her new boyfriend, she still had an hour to kill.

So she decided to head to the arcade in hopes of seeing a certain someone.

That certain someone happened to be Shobu Sumiya, fellow academy student and elemental jutsu fan. She'd spoken to him several times all throughout her academy days and although she was no where near understanding her own feelings, she did have quite the crush on the shorter, brown haired boy with a laid back personality. When not training, Sumiya could be easily found at the arcade satisfying his other great interest, arcade games.

Sure enough, there he was, playing the latest release of Ninja Warrior 2, a fighting game that had managed to acquire quite a bit of popularity over the last year. Tachibana was quite the accomplished player herself, and she and Sumiya had clashed many times. The two were so good that most of the other players, mostly civilians who were afraid to be around Shinobi anyway, kept clear of either of them when they played.

Currently, Sumiya was disposing of an unwitting challenger who had over estimated his own ability and was now receiving quite the humiliation at Sumiya's hands. Tachibana waited quietly while Sumiya finished up the second round with a super finisher move. The other player muttered something about a good match before hightailing it out of there, leaving Sumiya to face the computer controlled opponents.

That's when Tachibana advanced forward and crouched in front of the machine to feed it some coins. "Hey Sumiya," she grinned.

Sumiya raised his brow, but didn't seem too surprised, "Oh, hey," he seemed as if he wanted to say something else, but he only maintained his silence as she finished feeding the coins. Yes, this would be the perfect time sink.

--

Kurobozu yawned and rolled over, realizing too late that he was on the edge of Yuri's bed, he gave a quick yelp before spinning onto the floor with a flop.

This woke Yuri, who had slept through her alarm. She bolted up with a start and dived toward her alarm clock to see what time it was. Unfortunately in her groggy state she misjudged her dive, and landed face first on the floor next to Kurobozu, who sniffled her face mockingly.

She pushed him off and grumbled as she stood and fixed her eyes on the clock yet again. Eleven, not too late, with some luck and haste she'd be on time to Weeper's Pond. Yuri could smell the moisture in the air, any sort of training would be detestable in this weather. Sweating in an already humid environment was just awful. Kurobozu wouldn't like it either

The uncomfortable humidity followed Yuri through out her hastened morning routine, the longest portion of which involved wolfing down some breakfast in much the fashion her little friend did. Not thirty minutes after waking she was out the door and jogging down the small path that led away from her family home, jumping over one of the sleeping older wolves, Kurobozu's uncle.

She made good time, arriving at Weeper's Pond with several minutes to spare. Close to the water the humidity was even worse and it seemed the fog was thicker than back in town. Yuri sat on a nearby stump, neither Tachibana nor Sujiya were anywhere in sight.

Ten minutes later, Yuri was beginning to grow impatient. Kurobozu whined, which caused Yuri to frown, which irritated Kurobozu more.

"Awww… It's gotta be past noon by now. Where are they?" Yuri kicked some dust as she got up from the tree stump.

"Oh, afternoon Yuri!" there was Tachibana, rushed over in a huff and stammering out an apology for being so late. The two shared an uncomfortable moment of silence.

"So… about yesterday." Yuri hesitated before continuing, she'd been really angry at Subaru and wanted to explain.. Tachi interjected before she could continue.

"Ah, it's alright. I don't think any less of you, he did challenge you."

Yuri nodded after considering Tachi's words for a moment before opening her mouth to respond.

There was a loud watery explosion suddenly, causing Yuri to shut her mouth and spin around back to the pond. Water rained down on her and Tachibana from something that had burst out of the water near the center. After a moment of blinking water out of their eyes, the two of them looked up to see a woman in her mid twenties, who appeared to be standing atop a fountain of water.

The characterizations that Sujiya drew on Tachi and Yuri's scrolls did do a good job of capturing her spirit. There was the same smirk, wild shoulder length dark hair, and piercing gaze that was simultaneously alluring and maddening. Her whole persona exuded an aura that said "please, mess with me if you want to die today".

Sujiya stared at Tachi and Yuri, both of which couldn't for some reason match their gaze with her. She was just too intimidating. Were all Jounin so scary? Here she seemed to have perfect mastery over water, going so far as to use it as a platform. Even now she was moving it closer to the bank of the pond. The amount of Chakra control skill necessary for what she was doing must've been immense.

The torrent of water reached the bank and deposited Sujiya at the edge of the pond. She held her gaze at the two Genin standing before her, both of which seemed to be melting. Suddenly she smiled creepily and giggled.

"So good to see you two, Tachibana, Yuri." Her voice was actually quite sweet. She nodded to both of them in turn, Tachibana giving a sudden embarrassed bow and Yuri giving a curt nod.

In the time it took Yuri to blink, Sujiya was behind her, arm raised. She clocked Yuri on the top of the head with a downward punch.

"OW! What did I do?!"

Sujiya's voice was much, much more gruff and angry when she spoke this time, "Damnit, don't just nod to your sensei! I swear the Genin these days have no sense of respect." She shrugged and threw her hands up into the air with her eyes closed as if to say "what can you do about it?" ignoring Yuri's angry stare all the while.

"Your saving grace is that you showed up on time Yuri, which is more than I can say about Tachibana." Tachibana flushed furiously as she bowed again and began to stammer out a response.

"So sorry Sujiya sensei!" she bowed again, "I was distracted by a friend, it won't happen again."

Sujiya sized her up with narrowed eyes before giving another friendly smile and patting Tachibana on the head. The young girl chuckled nervously and flushed further.

"For that, ten laps around the pond." Tachi's chuckling ceased as Yuri groaned.

The two of them started to jog around the edge of the pond, but were quickly halted by their new sensei.

"Hey, that's too easy now. Run on the water," she stepped out onto the pond to demonstrate, the water showing no disturbance at her presence, aside from a ripple at her feet. She made it look very easy. "And if you fall in, you'll have to start over."

Both Yuri and Tachibana were about to groan, but Sujiya raised her fist at the both of them threateningly, which sent the two of them on the water. Both of them had done this before at the academy, but they had never made either of them run laps on water before.

--

Seven hours later the two of them were still at it. Yuri about one third of a lap behind Tachibana, this was her sixth time around the pond, this time. She'd gotten almost seven times around an hour earlier before she fell in and had to start over. Tachi wasn't doing much better, having only completed eight laps earlier in the day before plummeting into the pond herself.

Today had not been fun. Would Sujiya really make both of them run all night if they had too? Yuri felt like her legs were going to explode in protest if she continued any further.

Yuri's wondering mind distracted her long enough to break her concentration, which caused her to plummet into the water again. For a moment she felt as if she might stay there under the water. Hey, at least she wouldn't have to run anymore.

Mere seconds after her own plummet into the pond, Yuri saw Tachibana splash down into the water at the other side of the lake. She, like Yuri, did not immediately move to surface either. Ouch, it must've been even more rough on someone not focused on taijutsu like she was.

Finally having her lack of breath catch up with her, Yuri surfaced with a gasp and paddled to the edge of the lake, where Sujiya kneeled, looking rather bored. She pulled herself past the water line and rolled onto her back in time for Kurobozo to start licking at her face. Yuri was too tired to stop him.

"Fine, fine, that's enough for today. Good work. I'll see both of you tomorrow at noon." Sujiya rose and nodded to Yuri, she cupped her hands at either side of her mouth and called out to Tachi, letting her know she could stop as well. The smaller girl could only call out weakly with a, "Yes, sensei," at the other side of the lake.

Yuri felt a little bad for Tachibana. If she felt as horrid as she did from all of that, then surely Tachibana must be on the verge of passing out. Yuri told her self she would get up after a few more breaths, but a few more breaths passed and she had not yet risen to her feet.

Then she heard footsteps leading away, Yuri turned her head to look, but Sujiya was already gone. She groaned and sat up rather painfully, hoping with every aching muscle in her body that this wasn't going to be a daily occurrence.

--

Uchiha Karai paced back and forth impatiently. His Genin weren't late yet, but he was itching to get this mission underway. Normally he wouldn't be taking Genin so deep into enemy territory, but the circumstances of the war changed things considerably.

Nearly half a century of war had worn down the resources of Konohagakure, and despite its great strength and size, hidden leaf was in constant need of able bodied Jounin. Things had been especially tight lately, so Karai had been given a "less dangerous" mission into Water country territory. His superiors felt that the years worth of experience his Genin had was more than enough to prepare them for a simple infiltration mission. They'd be in and out, staying only long enough to meet with their informant on the other side of things.

It had been a while since Karai had had a chance of meeting any Mist Shinobi, and he was yearning for a kill.

Rakka was the first to arrive, calmly striding over with his hands in his pockets, his pants had an odd cut, one pant leg was cut shorter than the other, stopping just after the knee. This was done to allow easier access to the kunai holster strapped to his leg just under the knee, the other pant leg went all the way down to the ankle. It looked a little odd, but Karai knew that Rakka did this for good reason. There were kunai hidden under the longer pant leg as well. It was a good trick, most people would think he'd run out after using all of the kunai on his visible holster. It could make for a nice surprise in a pinch.

Karai had to admit, the boy had guts, and a lot of motivation, more than Hyuuga Himachi at any rate. Though, despite all of this, he still gave Rakka a much harder time compared to his other two students, Himachi was Hyuuga, and thus automatically better, Karai couldn't have cared less about Nastumomo Kinako, she was female, and thus worthless.

The boy stopped a few meters away from him and bowed stiffly, receiving only a grunt of acknowledgment from his teacher. He stood in silence, which Karai preferred anyway. He really didn't have anything to say to the boy regardless.

After a few minutes Nastumomo Kinako came into view, she was moving a bit faster than Rakka had been, though she'd been cutting it much closer than Rakka had. There was only three minutes left by the time she took her position next to Rakka and bowed. Karai did not acknowledge her with a grunt as he had with Rakka.

Finally, in the nick of time, Hyuuga Himachi appeared on the other side of Rakka, quit literally. Of course someone as boisterous as Himachi would waste Chakra on a flashy appearance the very morning his team was to leave on the most dangerous mission they had undertaken yet. Rakka's inner self scowled and shook it's fist. What a jerk!

Karai didn't seem too interested in Himachi's flashy entrance, if anything he was simply relieved that they could set out on time

"Alright you three, you better have everything ready. If not, I'm leaving you behind. Its several days to the Wave country, and from there we've a skiff that will take us to the Water country."

Kinako raised a hand at this, Karai's impatience flared a bit, but he mentally doused it and nodded for her to speak.

"Sorry for interrupting sensei, but a skiff? Isn't it several days on boat to the Water country? A boat so small wouldn't work would it?"

Karai smirked, "You're still thinking like an ordinary civilian Kinako. We've means to hasten the trip. The owner of the skiff isn't a simple fisherman you know. Now, if there are no other questions?"

Karai looked over each of his genin and smiled inwardly. Finally, he had a chance at some action again. Furthermore, if all went well during this mission his genin would be up for promotion to chuunin status, and if so he would be free of them at last and hopefully reassigned to a position more befitting his skills.

"We're moving out, Himachi, you have point."


	3. First blood and the Mad Jounin

Naruto:

Blood Mist Chronicle

By deathbyd4

Episode 3

First blood and the Mad Jounin.

Four entire days of training hadn't done anything to douse Yuri's already foul mood. Running around that damn lake all day wasn't her idea of time well spent, though she did secretly admit, if only to herself, that she was making the rounds easier every day. Still, everyone knew that fighting was the best training there was! Fighting was so much more interesting than running laps on the surface of a pond! Yuri scowled as she remembered yesterday, Sujiya sitting on what looked like a throne made of water at the center of the pond, a grin splitting her face from ear to ear as her two Genin panted and struggled into the approaching evening.

Yuri passed Jiisha and Subaru on her way to Weeper's Pond, grumbling at the muggy weather, the kind where sweat didn't do anything to cool the body, it only made the workout all the more miserable. Jiisha and Subaru seemed to be talking about the mission they had been on the other day. Certainly it was very important to escort a food cart from the market to a village two days walk from now! Idiots, thought Yuri, as she tilted her nose up.

Tachibana was already there when Yuri arrived, as usual. She was leaning against one of the trees that grew a few meters away from the edge of the pond, fanning herself. It did seem like the humidity was higher here near the pond. Neither Yuri nor Tachibana spoke a greeting, Tachibana offered a nod, but Yuri only harrumphed and crossed her arms in irritation. The two hadn't really found the time to socialize outside of training, usually it was a struggle to get home and into bed each evening.

Silence dragged on. A cicada droned in the still air. Yuri's eye twitched in further irritation. Not a moment too soon, Sujiya burst from the depths of the pond, sending huge waves of water in all directions, completely soaking her two students, who stood aghast, Kurobozu yapping excitedly from where he sat tucked in Yuri's oversized shirt.

Sujiya struck a dramatic pose at the top of the water spout she had created. "I hope you two are ready to get going," she grinned. "You're going on your first mission today, and it's hardly for slackers!"

Tachibana spat the water that had found its way into her lungs and frowned.

--

Two days later the three found themselves at the edge of a small village. Sujiya explained the details on the way. Apparently there was a group of thugs disrupting the grocers' business in this village and the surrounding area. A team of men had been dispatched to deal with them, but most of them came back bruised and bloodied, a few of their number dead. The village had then appealed to the mayor, who had then appealed to the Mizukage for aid, citing witness accounts that the troublemakers were trained Ninja. The Mizukage listened to the complaints patiently, only nodding when the mayor of the village exaggerated the damage that had been done by the punks. The Anbu had known about the thugs for a few years now, but saw no reason to dispose of them as long as they remained nothing more than an annoyance. Now that the thugs were beginning to show signs of increased organization and ambition in their actions the Mizukage would have them disposed. Meager payment on the part of the village was agreed upon, and a contract was drawn.

This mission would certainly not be handled by Anbu; it was a waste of their time really. The Mizukage had a better idea for these annoying brigands. One of his most famous Jounin, Sujiya, had up to now an untested duo of Genin. Both of Sujiya's students were promising, though green. If anything went wrong during the operation, Sujiya would be with them to clean things up. If either of Sujiya's students happened to die during this low ranking mission it would hardly matter. A culling of the herd so to speak, though the Mizukage privately admitted that he would strongly prefer the two survive unscathed. Manpower was low across the board after all.

None of this was known to Yuri or Tachibana of course, they knew only that the road was boring, the weather was muggy, and that Sujiya was entirely too creepy. Tachibana tried to make conversation with her eccentric Jounin, but often times it ended with Sujiya asking an embarrassing question, or smacking Yuri for saying something out of place. Despite all of this; Tachibana found herself refreshed by the outing, at the very least she and Yuri were not running themselves ragged on that damn pond.

Evening set in as they came to the outskirts. It was a small farming village with simple homes dotting a landscape of rice paddies. The rain heavy climate of the water country was a benefit in this regard. Looking deeper into the village proper there could be seen several building surrounding what looked like a town square, complete with shops government buildings. It was rather picturesque out here.

Tachibana and Yuri halted and turned when they realized that Sujiya was no longer walking with them.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. I think you two can handle things here just fine." Sujiya grinned toothily and stretched as if she were just waking from a nap. "I've got more important things to do right now."

"What? You mean you aren't coming with us?" asked Yuri, pensively. Tachibana said nothing, but secretly hoped their teacher wouldn't leave them. This was their first real mission, after all.

"Oh, I'll be around, make no mistake." Sujiya moved to the edge of the road, "and don't whine alright? I might even hear you and come running to the rescue if you scream loud enough!" she laughed and bounded off, disappearing faster than the two Genin could protest her departure.

The two were forced to continue on alone, catching suspicious stares from the villagers as they passed by, many of them stopping their mid afternoon work to get a look, mopping the sweat from their brows, wondering why two girls were walking alone when bandits were about.

Many drew back out of respect or fear when they saw the Mist headbands shining in the afternoon sun. The girls passed by without a word, the younger men whispering to each other with excitement; "We ask for help and they send us children? They insult us!" though these were quickly quieted by those old enough to have seen Shinobi in action. In hushed voices they said it was best to leave them be and that if the Mizukage had sent children to do the job, then children would do the job.

All of this reverence did seem to inject a sense of pride into the two Genin, who began to joke with one another about how they would deal with the thugs. They didn't need Sujiya after all.

Coming into the town square now, Yuri and Tachibana made a beeline for the grocer. The mayor of the village also happened to be the town's grocer, a common practice in tiny farming villages like this one.

The mayor was a short man, too tanned by the sun, his face perpetually drawn in a distrustful scowl. At first he did not believe that they were the Shinobi assigned to take care of his "crisis", only relenting and accepting the aid of the two Genin after a rude outburst on Yuri's part and several apologies on Tachibana's. The two asked where they might find the bandits and scowling the man answered they only needed to wait. The thugs had grown so bold in their actions that they were raiding almost daily, the mayor explained as he pointed out his empty shelves. Soon his stock would be completely diminished, the village had paid the Mizukage well, at least in their minds, and they expected results. The two Genin nodded and left the shop, deciding to 'hide in plain sight', waiting for the thugs to show up.

They didn't have to wait long.

As brigands go, they weren't half bad; they had a decent leader, an aura of fear necessary for keeping the villagers in check, and a good amount of weapons. Charging across the fields like children in a schoolyard, they chased the farmers about, making sport of their panicked fleeing. They trudged through the paddies, deliberately churning the waters in their passing. Laughing, they poured into the town square, the largest of them, obviously the leader, heading up the pack of seven. As they drew close Tachibana noticed that the large man had a rusted and obviously counterfeited Mist head band. Nudging Yuri, who was trying to keep Kurobozu quiet, she nodded in the direction of the man with the head band.

Stopping in the center of square, the men suddenly halted their laughter. They had seen the two girls, headbands openly displayed, looking somewhat impatient at their approach.

The big man came two steps forward from his group and said in a bellow; "This is the help that mayor was ramblin' on about? He hired two girls like you?" he laughed aloud, but the men behind him only joined somewhat nervously. The two Genin stood, Yuri letting Kurobozu down at her feet, he growled, though he only came off as too cute, instead of too intimidating.

After getting a better look at how short and young the two girls looked the men gained in confidence. The large man gestured forward, immediately the men stepped forward, brandishing the crude weapons they held gleefully. Yuri was the first to act.

Leaping to flank the men, she launched a kunai at the closest. The man, totally untrained in the ways of the Shinobi, was no match for the precision Yuri had honed over the years, he stared dumbly down at the kunai lodged in the base of his neck before toppling over in a gurgling fit. The remaining men were not deterred, after all, they reasoned, they need only get within striking distance of the small girl and her silly dog and she would be done with.

They really were ignorant of how vicious the little dog could be. Nipping at the heels of two of the men, who halted their advance to swipe at the dog, Kurobozu darted in and out, acting as a suitable distraction long enough for Yuri to rush forward and launch into a combo, catching them both unprepared and raking them with her claws, in moments the left eye of the first man was gouged beyond recovery. Dropping his weapon, the man screamed and tumbled to the ground, where he was further harassed by Kurbozu's biting.

Tachibana wasn't just standing around either. Two of the men conveniently lined themselves one behind the other. Tachibana quickly took advantage of the situation, the young girl's hands launched into a torrent of motion and before the men knew what was happening, a torrent of high pressure water shot from her, killing the first man with the force of the blast, and severely injuring the one behind him.

The last of the big man's two men were swiftly dispatched by kunai in the seconds that followed. The leader could hardly believe what had occurred! In seconds these children had ruined everything! White as a sheet, the large man shrank away from them, dropping his weapon and running for the alley between the grocery and the mayor's house. Yuri was faster however, and scooping up Kurobozu as she ran, body angled to the ground, she was to the far side of the alley before the leader of the bandits could exit, screeching to a halt at this realization, the leader stopped, to his right; a ladder, behind him; Tachibana, and ahead; Yuri and Kurobozu. The man clambered up the ladder in a blind panic, impressing both of the Genin with the speed at which he reached the top of the mayor's grocery.

Casually walking to the base of the ladder, Yuri and Tachibana grinned at each other widely, their sharpened teeth glinting wickedly in the later afternoon sun. Outwardly the two were calm and collected, almost inhuman considering their age and the grim nature of their work. Tachibana was the first up the ladder, followed by Yuri, who half climbed, half leapt up to the roof of the grocery store.

Now the villagers were coming to gawk at what had transpired, several of them in shock at the quick and deadly work of the two "children", the older folk only nodding wisely and gesturing to the carnage left behind as if to say "I told you so."

The large man, now ex-leader of a group of thugs who thought themselves ambitious bandits, backed away from the two approaching Genin. He did not like the look on the faces of the two girls one bit. Stumbling further back to the edge of the roof, he looked over his shoulder and saw the villagers gathered below, some looking at what was left of his men in disbelief, and other's now pointing at him angrily. There would be no escape now.

Yuri strode calmly over to the man, casually wiping the blood off of he claws as if it was something she did every day, she was only a meter away from him when he made a fatal mistake.

Panicking, the man stepped back again, into empty air. Screaming until the stop at the bottom of the short fall knocked the wind from him, he tried to struggle to his feet but the villagers would have none of that. They descended on him with all the pent up rage and frustration at the loss of property and senseless deaths the man and his thugs had inflicted on the people.

Tachibana and Yuri looked on impassively as the crown began to beat the man almost as if they had choreographed the act ahead of time; it wasn't long before his screams became cries begging them to stop, to spare him. The crowd was seemed deaf to his cries, and in less than a minute the man was a bloodied, silent mess.

"Serves him right." Yuri said flatly, as Tachibana grinned, a little sickened at the blood, she was satisfied nonetheless. Tachibana was Mist Shinobi she told herself, there was no room for such weakness in the Bloody Mist.

It was strangely convenient how Sujiya had finished just as the two Genin exited the village that evening. When pressed as to her whereabouts, the crazed Jounin simply waved her hands, imitating a ghost, and exclaimed that she was on a secret mission for the Mizukage. Tachibana wasn't sure if she should believe her or not, it hardly mattered either way.

Sujiya grilled the two for a full report on the way back, asking at length for all the gory details of the battle. She grinned when Yuri talked about gouging out the man's eye, and laughed when Tachibana related the bit about water jet technique. Sujiya wouldn't show it if it killed her, but she was proud of her two Genin. Just as the Mizukage had said, Tachibana and Yuri were extremely talented for their age, and she began to understand why the Mizukage was so concerned with their development.

Excited as they were, the two Genin were restless and protested when Sujiya suggested they stop and rest for the night. After a short debate Sujiya agreed to continue at least long enough for the three to reach the inside of the hilly forest region that Kirigakure was buried deep within. Though that involved several more hours of speedy travel that would leave them stopping to camp at first light, it hardly seemed a problem to the two Genin, who were deep in celebration and congratulating each other all the way.

As it was, they were a bit worn down when events took a turn for the worse.

--

Rakka leapt from bough to bough of the tall trees that made up the forest surrounding the Kirigakure region. For days Himachi, Kinako, Rakka, and Karai had navigated the forest in secret. Never coming very close to the village or the outskirts, Karai said this was necessary to avoid detection. It had been almost a week since the four had left their home in Konohagakure, and Rakka was beginning to doubt their mission, along with the sanity of his teacher. Just what the hell was Karai sensei and his Genin supposed to be doing out here anyway?

Making a third round through the large area they were told to cover, Rakka and Himachi met again with Karai and Kinako, the girl had a tight lipped expression on her face, and Karai wore a feverish expression on his scarred visage. The four had crowded together on the same branch.

"The target is within sight at last." Karai spoke in a hushed tone. "Remember what I said you three, stay in the trees and wait for my signal. Do not move an inch before I give it!"

The three Genin looked at each with expressions of exhilarated fear, Himachi made a face back at Rakka, which he promptly ignored. Here they were, stuck deep in enemy territory for days, a mission that should've been left to much more powerful and experienced Shinobi. It was an honor to be part of this, Rakka told himself time and over again. Though at times when he looked at Karai, he wondered just what he was part of.

Too late now, the boy thought, the time for completion of this highly unusual mission was upon them, and he would not question his teacher's direction.

Karai directed his Genin to two separate points on either side of the path where the target would pass, Rakka and Himachi on one side, Kinako and Karai on the other.

Poised as they were in the shadows of the trees, Rakka attempted to stay as quiet as possible. He was certain he was doing a bad job of it though, his heart was thunder in his ears, and each breath he was certain could be heard by Karai ten meters away in the other tree. In reality, Rakka was totally silent.

There were several more tense minutes of silence, broken only by the wind blowing the leaves of the trees, heavy with recent rains, though the ground was now dry. Rakka calmed considerably in the interim, so much that the movement he saw on the forest floor startled him.

Two girls, Genin by the looks of them, walked proudly next to a much taller older woman, what Rakka assumed to be a Jounin. Though the two Genin appeared a bit worn out, they both bore contented smirks. Rakka tensed at the sight of their Mist head bands, they were the enemy after all, an enemy renowned for its ferocity and lack of mercy on the battlefield and off of it. They were Shinobi of the Hidden Mist.

Rakka inhaled sharply when his sensei suddenly dropped from the trees, standing directly in the path of the three Shinobi. The two Genin girls froze, their faces suddenly paling at the sight of Karai's Leaf head band. The taller woman, the Jounin, stepped forward between them suddenly, pushing them behind her protectively, she spoke.

"So what's this we have here? Seems my suspicions were correct." The woman flashed a grin of wicked, sharpened teeth. Karai was instantly enraged by her nonchalance.

"Damn you! You soggy hag, whore of the Mist!" Karai shifted to a more threatening stance. Rakka frowned at the words. There was madness in Karai's voice.

"I see, you've come all this way for a rematch Uchiha?" the words dripped from the woman tauntingly, this was clearly highly entertaining to her. She looked over her shoulder at the two Genin behind her and whispered something, instantly the two took to the surrounding brush on the side of the road. "Have you come looking for me to grant your body scars that will match those on your face?" She laughed long and hard.

Karai was sputtering with fury. His hands were a flurry of motion, and had Rakka been able to see from his angle, he would've seen Karai's Sharingan already activated. There was suddenly a bright explosion that Himachi and Rakka were forced to cover their eyes against.

--

Tachibana, weary as she was from the days events and the nights travel, was alive with the surge of adrenaline. What was such a powerful enemy doing so close to home? Sujiya sensei had spoken as if she'd known him from the war. Had the man come to seek revenge for his face?

The bright flash that caused her to duck further into the brush certainly confirmed that suspicion.

It was nothing for Sujiya to dodge the line of fire that shot from Karai; she threw three shuriken, which Karai easily parried with a kunai of his own, thanks to the power of his Sharingan. Again Karai launched into a flurry of hand seals, Sujiya racing just as quickly to match him.

Two streams of elemental energy surged forth, the larger; a gout of flame eight meters long, clashed between the two combatants with a line of highly pressurized water. The conflagration burst outward in a steaming rain that pelted the three Genin in hiding in the trees, leaving small burn marks on their faces, they were too enthralled to be bothered by them.

With extreme haste, Sujiya grabbed a large scroll that had been strapped to the small of her back and unfurled it flat on the ground in one smooth motion, biting the tip of her thumb without hesitating a moment, she drew a bright red slash with it across the characters. Karai relented a moment, waiting to see what happened, his hands held in a ready position.

For several seconds, nothing happened. Then Tachibana noticed rain falling gently at first, then a sudden torrent, almost a deluge. The ground was suddenly slick and muddy, and everyone was soaked immediately.

Karai hesitated no longer, his fingers flashed faster than the Genin could see, and before him manifested a long trailing dragon made of fire, the beast whirled around in the air before its master, before turning to Sujiya and suddenly darting forward. Sujiya was fast, but not fast enough. The dragon clipped her in the side, singing her badly in its passing; it wheeled around for a second strike, though this time Sujiya was ready for it.

The rain slowed as Sujiya leapt high into the air, dodging the speeding dragon with ease she landed unscathed in its wake. The dragon then dissipated, its energies depleted. Karai's face twisted further into anger.

Sujiya only smirked as she stretched out her arm immediately to the right. Slowly an orb of water began to collect just beyond her outstretched palm. Truly this was a master water elementalist Karai was facing, but he was Uchiha, and not to be taken lightly.

Karai waited, ready to counter any further Jutsu she attempted. To his surprise Sujiya made no more hand seals, instead she slammed her balled first into the fully formed water sphere. A moment later, three tendrils of water snaked from the sphere, hovering a moment before shooting out at the surprised Uchiha.

The first of the water spears he dodged easily thanks to his high speed sight. Spinning to his left, he prepared to dodge the second and third, but he was far too slow. The second tendril sped and became a spear of water, it clipped Karai on the side of this chest, but this was not the worst of it. Karai was left spinning off balance in the air, easy prey for the third water spear; it sped at him, clipping him full on in the right arm, almost tearing it straight off at the elbow.

Despite himself, Rakka cried out at the sight of Karai's arm being torn. He turned to Himachi and nodded to the ground below, signaling with his hands "assist me". Himachi, face white with fear, shook his head furiously no, and before Rakka could ask anything further, fled through the tree branches as far and as fast as he could. Tachibana heard Rakka's initial cry, and witnessed the entire spectacle where she hid in the brush, though she could only see the two of them as shadows in the tree, now a single shadow.

The shadow tucked and rolled as it crashed into the brush directly beside Tachibana. A second longer and it was into the light trickling down through the boughs of the trees and Tachibana could see it was a boy slightly older than her, with long black hair and a Leaf headband. Savagely he attacked Sujiya, who was surprised, though hardly caught off guard by the Genin's amateur attacks.

Karai struggled to his feet, looking down at his right arm in horror, which was now hanging by little more than a thread of flesh. He was finished for sure, and the horror of this realization distracted him from even realizing that his errant student was attempting to save him. How could he lose to that disgusting bitch Sujiya!? Shamed again! Growling, he withdrew his left hand from his right arm, letting the mangled thing swing in a sickening fashion which made Tachibana turn her head, fighting the urge to be sick. Karai launched into a series of seals with his left hand, growling through the pain all the while.

Deftly whirling out of the way of one of Rakka's punches with what seemed to be zero effort, Sujiya realized what Karai was about to do. It was a technique she had seen several times performed by Uchiha on the battlefield, a famous one at that. The foolish Leaf Genin that had launched himself out of the trees to attack her didn't even notice what his teacher was about to do. Sujiya bit her lip in suppressed disgust at Karai; didn't he care that he would envelop his own student into the flames? How foolish of him to even bring his student here, and was he the only one around? Sujiya twisted her body to dodge a decently aimed spinning kick and braced herself for the oncoming technique from Karai. She wouldn't be able to dodge it like this, but she had another trick up her sleeve.

Rakka felt the heat on his back just in time to flip backward out of the way of the fiery storm Karai had leveled on Sujiya. She didn't leap out of the way like Rakka had, and he could see her form being incinerated in the intense blaze of the flames. Karai had done it! Despite his incredible injury he had come through for a victory against this terrifying Mist Jounin. The intense relief that flooded through Rakka left him shuddering in barely contained joy. Even now the flames were thinning, leaving behind the body of the-

There was a small log with a taunting happy face hastily scratched into the bark where the Mist Jounin once stood. Before Rakka could grasp what had happened he heard a strangled gurgle behind him.

Sujiya was standing tall with her arms spread wide on a branch well above Karai's head. Grinning wickedly, she tugged at two shining lines that trailed from her fingers. Karai's left hand clawed at his neck, his eyes bulging from his head, somehow causing the Sharingan to be displayed all the brighter. His right arm twitched helplessly at his side. Tachibana, hiding in the bushes slightly closer to Karai than Rakka currently was, could see the light glinting off the wire drawn tight around Karai's neck, a line of red seeped out from underneath the wire.

Rakka, starting out of the shock the sight had left him in, reached to the pouch on his leg and withdrew two kunai, flinging both of them straight at the seemingly immobile Sujiya in an attempt to stop her. Sujiya saw it coming however and her grin widened further, revealing her sharpened teeth that was trademark to most Mist Shinobi. She dodged the projectiles in the most efficient way possible, by toppling over backward from the tree branch, twisting her body on the way down, drawing the wires tight around her down the opposite side.

With a sickening slick noise, Karai's head was liberated from his neck in a gory spray that coated the branch, ground, and Sujiya's legs as she hit the ground, letting the wire slip from her hands as she did so.

There was a moment of palatable silence, Sujiya staring at the Leaf Genin to see what his next move would be, Rakka in mute silence. There was the sound of someone throwing up in the bushes nearby.

Rakka charged, shouting wildly as he crossed the distance between himself and Sujiya in scant seconds, leaping over the still spurting corpse of Karai and launching himself at Sujiya. The two crashed together and rolled into the mud and wet leaves. Rakka tried to throw a punch in the confusion of the tumble, but failed as Sujiya used the momentum of the roll to throw him several meters behind her, where he landed hard on his back knocking the wind clean out of his lungs.

Rolling onto his stomach, Rakka gasped vainly for air as he fought for the strength to pull himself up off the ground. His mind raced with the knowledge that the powerful Mist Jounin would be on him in a second, he realized now he had been intensely stupid in charging her so directly. Tasting blood in his mouth, he cursed Himachi for his cowardice and wondered what had happened to Kinako, probably dead of course. Rakka coughed violently, realizing in the back of his mind that someone was approaching him, the Jounin of course, Rakka realized. This is it for me then.

Rakka jerked his head up quickly when he saw the boots of his soon to be killer stop right in front of him. There was Sujiya, her expression unreadable, she held out her hand above Rakka's head and instantly he was ensnared in an impenetrable bubble of water.

Caught up in his terror, Rakka thrashed wildly against the curved wall of his prison fruitlessly. Sujiya let the boy flail around stupidly for a few moments before she knelt on to the balls of her feet, waiting patiently for him to finish his tirade. After a few moments she was rewarded with Rakka suddenly ceasing his meaningless struggle and looking up into her eyes with an expression of fear mixed with rage. Sujiya had been about to finish the boy off, but she hesitated when he saw the anger in his eyes. Sujiya had been gifted with a better idea, one that in some ways was far crueler than a quick death out here in the forest.

Rakka didn't have any time to wonder why he was still alive, though he kept his gaze locked with the terrible Mist Jounin, his eyes suddenly felt very heavy, and the urge to sleep was strong and simultaneously welcoming and terrifying. Before he could blink to clear his blurring vision, Rakka slumped into the unconsciousness.

Sujiya grinned again.


End file.
